Judean Free Government

Judean Free Government
ממשלת יהודה
A Menorah was a national symbol of Judean rebels
Overview
Established	66[1]-68
State	Judean state
Leader	Head of Government
Appointed by	The heads of government were formally appointed by the Jewish People's Assembly in consultation with the Great Sanhedrin. District commanders were directly appointed by the heads of the government.
Responsible to	Judean People's Assembly
Headquarters	Jerusalem

The Judean Free Government was a short-living de-facto governing entity of Judea, established in the year 66 by Judean rebel forces of the Pharisee and Saduccee parties,^[1] aiming to govern the Judean state. The government functioned until the Zealot Temple Siege in the year 68, when most of the government leaders were massacred in the inter-rebel struggle.

History

Following the defeat of Gallus in Beth Horon, the People's Assembly was called under the spiritual guidance of Simeon ben Gamliel and thus the Judean Free Government was formed in Jerusalem. Former High Priest Ananus ben Ananus was appointed one of the government heads and began reinforcing the city, with other prominent figures such as Joseph ben Gurion and Joshua ben Gamla taking leading roles; Yosef ben Matityahu was appointed the commander in Galilee and Golan, while Joseph ben Shimon was appointed commander of Jericho, Yohanan the Issean commander of Jaffa, Lydda, Ammeus-Nikopolis and the Tamna area and Elazar ben Hananiya the joint commander in Edom together with Joshua ben Zafia, with Niger the Perean (the war hero during the Gallus campaign) under their command.

The Free Government became obsolete in the year 68, when inter-rebel strife led to the killing of most government members. According to the historian Josephus, Ananus incited the people to rise up against the Zealots who were in control of the Temple. The forces of Ananus besieged the Zealots who held the Temple. When John of Giscala led the Zealots to believe that Ananus had contacted the Roman General Vespasian for assistance in retaking control of all Jerusalem, the Zealots, driven to desperation, asked the Edomites (Idumeans) for assistance in preventing the delivery of the city to the Romans. When the Edomites arrived, the Zealots opened the gates of Jerusalem to them, and the Edomites slaughtered ben Hanan's (Ananus ben Ananus) forces, killing him as well.

Recognition

The rebel government was not recognized at any time by the Roman Empire and in fact enjoyed limited recognition from among the rebel factions. The Jerusalem-based rebel government had little authority in the Galilee, where locals were not satisfied with the fact that a non-local Joseph ben Matityahu was appointed a regional commander, marginalizing John of Gischala and Justus of Tiberias, who rejected his authority.^[2] Furthermore, Judean-based Zealots, Peasantry and most Idumean factions were never under direct control of the government.

Aftermath

After freeing the Zealots from the Temple, the Edomites and Zealots massacred the common people. Jerusalem mostly remained in the control of the Zealots until the year 70, when it was sacked by Rome.

References